In his latest step to consolidate his power, Tunisian President Kais Saied has designed a system in which he will rule the country primarily through decrees, bypassing the country's constitution, which is facing growing opposition from the president's political opponents and former allies alike.

This is how the New York Times correspondent in Cairo, Vivian Yee, summarized in her report part of the political crisis that Tunisia has been going through since Said suspended parliament, dismissed the prime minister and seized power last July 25.

The correspondent pointed out that Said's measures had enjoyed widespread popular support over the past two months, but it seems from the protests that many Tunisians began to become fed up with these measures;

Last Sunday, hundreds of them took to the streets, calling for Saeed to end - what they called - the "coup".

A joint statement signed by 4 political parties - including one that was previously close to Saeed - also warned that the president was heading towards dictatorship and called on him to end his "exceptional measures" that he had promised were temporary.

In the same direction, the "Tunisian General Labor Union" commented in a statement - last Friday - on Said's decisions, saying: "We consider that the president has lost his legitimacy by violating the constitution," and warned him against concentrating many powers in his hands without dialogue.

The union added that "there is no solution to the current crisis except through consultation, partnership and dialogue on the basis of national principles and Tunisia's sovereignty and service."

But President Said - according to the correspondent - failed to develop a long-awaited road map to change the course of the country, and alarmed Tunisians by refusing to engage with civil groups or other politicians to define the way forward.


Although discontent has expanded among Tunisians and reached the point of describing Said as a "dictator", the real test of the president's popularity - according to the writer - is whether he can address the economic misery that has thrown Tunisia into turmoil;

The country suffers from high unemployment, deteriorating living standards and widespread poverty that have led thousands of Tunisians to risk emigrating across the Mediterranean to Europe, and there are no clear prospects for improvement.

In this regard, the writer quoted a professor of Middle East politics at New York University-Abu Dhabi, Monica Marks, who studies the case of Tunisia, as saying that the economy is the core of the crisis, adding that “expectations are very high.”

Marx stressed that there will inevitably be a huge gap between populist expectations, which are higher than ever, and the reality of what President Kais Saied can actually deliver.